Ten’s decision to cut F1 is shocking yet unsurprising

News that Network Ten has terminated live Formula One coverage of all but the Australian Grand Prix blindsided many, yet the outcome had been coming for some time.

Most unsettling was the action’s immediacy, with last weekend’s scheduled Malaysia Grand Prix screening cancelled just two days ahead of the event.

The pre-existing contract – set to run through 2019 – didn’t even conclude the middle season of its intended duration.

The embattled station was acquired by American giant CBS last month, concluding years of uncertainty regarding its future, leading many to deduce that high-commodity items such as F1 were secure.

Alas, the scythe was drawn on coverage, which has featured on Ten rising 15 years, and free-to-air since 1985, with the Nine Network possessing the rights until the former inherited them in 2003.

Ten CEO Paul Anderson assured viewers, “the Australian Grand Prix is an iconic sporting event and we are delighted it will remain on Ten.” The patronising sentiment, with the ‘consolation’ of Monday evening highlights on secondary station One for all remaining events, further isolates a market which has diminished since its FTA presence was reduced in 2015.

On that occasion, it was revealed weeks prior to the curtain raiser that Ten – with a season remaining on the agreement in place at that time – had adopted the United Kingdom’s polarising ‘split’ model, which took effect in 2012.

Half of the calendar was to be screened live on Ten and the balance presented in highlight capacity, while Foxtel would assume exclusive rights to the latter, a direct reflection of British terrestrial broadcasters BBC, and currently, Channel 4, alongside Sky’s satellite coverage.

Sky’s bombshell in April 2016 that it had acquired exclusive broadcasting rights to the sport from 2019 has left many UK fans to endure an elongated conclusion to their viewership. As we’ve learnt, this is a courtesy which hasn’t been extended to Australians.

Having beaten the UK to the punch, with the added ignominy of having the tap switched off in the midst of the sport’s most compelling season in some time, readily sourcing legal viewing – $39 monthly at minimum via Foxtel’s streaming service, Now – for remaining events isn’t a viable option for most.

Notwithstanding its costs, Foxtel can’t be blamed for the result, having provided unprecedented coverage since its arrival onto the scene. The same juncture would have been reached in all likelihood by 2019, concurrent with the UK’s trajectory, had Ten chosen not to act immediately.

It won’t take long for the effects of the deal to be realised. Trading off a solitary event in the Australian GP – which has doubled as a cross-promotional tool in recent years – as a platform for a season of late Monday nights upon which viewers will be greeted by watered-down coverage won’t wash, and that’s for those who remain beyond this season.

The only caveat is that Formula One’s new owners, Liberty Media, appears to know what they’re doing, and will possess the good sense to see there is a market out there and negotiate accordingly.

Until then, in excess of 30 years of viewing for the majority has reached an abrupt yet inevitable conclusion.

Ten is only screening Australia out of that necessity, and as the stated cross promotional tool for their chat and reality programs. The coverage for that weekend alone will be laced with commercials. The paradox is there again that if you’re fortunate enough to have the funds for Foxtel, you’re receiving a great deal with comprehensive access to the sport, though it isn’t a reality for most.

To be fair to Ten (I suppose), according to creditor reports the CBS bid would leave it able to repay only 10 per cent of its debts to F1. It’s not surprising that F1 would want to minimise its losses, so I don’t know how much you could actually attribute this to poor form — it’s more collateral damage from management that left the station is such dire financial circumstances.

The overriding bitterness comes from how immediate the changes were, Ten didn’t even have the decency to broadcast the weekend in question, much less the few remaining commitments this season. Whether another network would be willing to become involved in the future is something Liberty will have to consider, though OTT is surely the only alternative to pay television moving forward.

What I mean is that we shouldn’t be surprised if it was not Ten’s fault per se that live rights were taken away from FTA. I don’t think Ten’s administrators decided all of a sudden to stop broadcasting the sport — indeed it’s important to note that the change was announced by Formula One with statements from FOM and Fox, but not from Ten. It looks to me that a deal was stitched up quickly by F1 to minimise the sport’s exposure to financial loss and ensure that there’s stability for the Australian deal going forward rather than Ten jettisoning the rights.

I think OTT is around the corner — indeed NBC, after apparently withdrawing from the bidding process for the US rights, said “we chose not to enter into a new agreement in which the rights holder itself competes with us and our distribution partners”. Seems like it’s only one cycle away.

Fair enough that FOM wants to protect itself, though you can only hope that they’re working on a solution in the medium term unless OTT arrives sooner than anticipated at a friendlier price than Foxtel.

This is where the debate over piracy hits the spot. If something is available legally and in timely fashion most will settle for it. At least Ten was screening its races in HD so it had something going for it, yet if a product is taken away – immediately, with the only legal option to pay unreasonable costs for most, you can’t be blamed for sourcing alternative ‘means.’

For those who can enjoy Foxtel’s Sky simulcast, there are no concerns, yet it’s hard not to sympathise with those who have a passion for the sport without the means to invest, and are now left with negligible coverage.

Disgraceful from 10 to just drop the remaining races with no mention or warning. I have loved F1 for 30 years as a kid growing up recording races on the VCR to watch them first thing in the morning before school was always a great way to start the week. Hopefully someone else picks up the FTA rights cause like most things if it’s not on FTA it doesn’t exist.

That’s the worst factor in the outcome, which can be argued had been coming for some time – to have the rug pulled without notice. The enthusiasm from those who are die hard fans sadly isn’t met by FTA in this age, you’d hope Liberty sees the need for a base level of coverage which functions in tandem with pay television and soon enough, over the top coverage.

At the height of Mark Webber’s success, Ten’s coverage was quite excellent – they had a 60 minute buildup for some time,

Inexplicably, its commitment since his retirement has gradually diminished, to the point of halved coverage from 2015, to commencing transmission as the cars were on the formation lap, and now to a non-existent presence. This despite Ricciardo’s broad appeal and the generally accepted wisdom that he is superior to his countryman.